Written by Kristy May
I’m Kristy, and I have always worked with animals in one way or another. In November of 2012, a customer of the kennel I worked at, brought in an akita puppy. We all gushed over him, and he told us there were more of his litter, running around a rural community near by…. So I set out on my lunch break to find them… And I did. A coworker and I managed to catch one before we had to go back to work. We ventured out the next day with extra help and a plan. We caught the remaining 5. Well, what to do with them hadn’t been considered, but I remembered a wonderful lady named Kath, who had done my home check when I adopted my heeler, earlier that year. I gave her a call and she said her rescue partner and her would be able to take them into their rescue, if we could find fosters. I took two, another employee took two, and the last two went to other employees.
That started my work with Zoes. We started making our presence known in that rural community, and started taking strays, spaying and neutering and educating owners on how to keep their pets happy and healthy.
My fosters were adopted into homes where I could watch them grow up (my neighbors adopted one), and that’s when I took on my second foster. Izumi. He never left my home
I fostered a few pups, usually ones needing some socializing and training before being adopted. I’ve also fostered tiny orphan kittens. It is an amazing feeling to see an animal grow and develop trust, when all they knew was defeat and fear. It is also amazing to see them in their forever homes, and how their families love them. It’s also heart warming to know, that we do make a difference in each and every animal we help.
In 2014, I took in Dozer, a return Zoes pup, who had developed severe fear aggression, and had a bite history. A month later, I received a call about an abandoned pitty on a farm. Both of these dogs were special cases, in that they have hard times trusting strangers, and without being 100% on the ball about what they do and are exposed to, they could end up hurting someone. So after both were up for adoption, with no luck finding homes, my fiance and I decided they had been home all along.
-Kristy May, a Zoe’s volunteer and foster
